Tom, about 25 or so years ago, I saw a house come together beginning with hay bales stacked and then Adobe or some such material around that. Is that what you are referring to? The house is still standing and being lived in.

The common shop construction in this area is steel, and that is probably I will do, but that doesn't mean I am committed to it yet. What are the advantages to this method beyond the thermal efficiency? Is it significantly less expensive to build?